I’m a parent with a guilty secret: at my house we eat dinner in front of the TV. Not every single night, but more often than not when we all happen to be together, which is increasingly rare.
We’re not watching arthouse films or ‘quality drama’ either. When our 21-year-old man-child deigns to sit with us, he chooses the shows and mostly what he wants is comedy in snack-size 20 or 30-minute installations. Not edgy, dangerous comedy either, like Baby Reindeer or Hacks, but safe, long-running shows that have been around for ages. Cosy ensembles with reliable setups, ones that proved their comedy chops and character chemistry in season after season. We’re talking the warmer, fuzzier American version of The Office, not the pricklier UK one.
Who can blame us for playing it safe on the couch when the news is dark and the future seems bleak? We’re all overstimulated by screens every day, so long-running ensemble comedy series are the equivalent of putting on our Ugg boots; hanging out with familiar faces in familiar places, where nothing very bad can ever go wrong, and where we get to share a laugh together – which is pretty much the best feeling you get to have as parent with your offspring.
Here are some fun shows to watch with teens and young adults. Of course tastes vary, along with the ages and stages of your particular family set-up – the maturity of viewers and your general tolerance for all being in the same room together when sexual inuendo, drug references, mental health struggles or profanity happen to come on screen.
7 feel-good comedy shows to stream with teens and where to find them
Parks and Recreation (Stan. Rating M)
Amy Poehler is a ray of silly, goodhearted sunshine as Leslie Knope, the eternally perky, mid-level bureaucrat working in the Parks Department of the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. There are seven seasons of this heartwarming American political mockumentary created by Greg Daniels (The Office) and Michael Shur (The Good Place). A terrific ensemble cast includes Rashida Jones, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Adam Scott and Rob Lowe.
The Office, US version (Stan. Rating M)
Another workplace mockumentary, the US version of The Office is based on the harsher (some say better) British comedy of the same name. This version focuses on the pranks, romances and office politics of a regional office of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company in small-town Pennsylvania. Steve Carrell plays the self-deluding but not entirely hateable branch manager Michael Scott, with a cast that includes John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer as the adorable would-be lovers, along with Rainn Wilson, Ed Helms and Mindy Kaling. There are nine seasons of The Office (US), so it will keep you going over hundreds of TV dinners – unless you lose interest (as we did) once babies enter the picture.
Schitt’s Creek (Netflix. Rating M)
How would a wealthy family react if they lost all their money and had to move to a motel in Hicksville? That’s the premise behind this multi award-winning Canadian sitcom created by father and son Dan Levy and Eugene Levy, who a play father and son, Johnny and David Rose, with Catherine O’Hara playing the now iconic wife and mother, Moira Rose, and Annie Murphy as ditzy daughter, Alexis. There are six seasons of this genuinely sweet, inclusive and hilarious show.
Arrested Development (Disney+. Rating M)
Another ‘riches to rags’ comedy about a wealthy family that has lost everything, and the one son who has no choice but to keep them all together. Arrested Development was created by Mitchell Hurwitz and Ron Howard (who also narrates and appears in later seasons) and stars Jason Bateman, Portia de Rossi and Will Arnett. There are five seasons of absurdist black humour here, with running gags and catchphrases, like, ‘There’s always money in the banana stand!’
Friends (Binge, Stan. Rating PG)
The adventures and mishaps of six young adults living in New York, the now legendary 1990s and early 2000s sitcom just celebrated 30 years since it first aired. The pop culture juggernaut of Friends starred Jennifer Anniston, Courtney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer in career-making roles. There were ten seasons of this very gently funny and now hokey show, that doesn’t quite pass today’s standards around homophobia, bodyshaming and lack of diversity. I must confess to a little surprise that many of today’s kids still love it – a fact made much of in the 2023 apocalyptic Netflix movie Leave the World Behind, where the teenage daughter would do almost anything to finish the series.
Fisk (ABC iview. Rating M)
We had to include this Australian gem, Fisk, even though it’s relatively new and only has two seasons to date, with a highly anticipated third season to premiere soon, on 20 October. Created by Australian comedian Kitty Flanagan and billed by ScreenHub critic Anthony Morris as ‘Australia’s funniest sitcom in years‘, Fisk fits the bill as comfy but hilarious. It’s an ensemble office comedy set at a Melbourne suburban solicitor’s practice, where Flanagan stars as the brown pant-suited Helen Tudor-Fisk, a smart, no-nonsense woman with a good heart and a cohort of infuriating but loveable colleagues, clients and family members. They’re played by Julia Zemiro, Marty Sheargold, Aaron Chen, Glenn Butcher and John Gaden.
What We Do in the Shadows (Binge. Rating M)
Sharing domestic space with others is always petty and annoying – even, or especially, when you’re a blood-sucking night-dweller! The original New Zealand version of this fantasy comedy mockumentary about vampires in a share-house is excellent, but you might also enjoy the US version, which has five seasons and a sixth starting on 22 October on Binge. Both series were created by Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords). The US version follows four vampires who are living as roommates in Staten Island New York City.
Other comedies to try with your teens and young adults
- Ted Lasso (Apple TV. Rating M)
- Sex Education (Netflix. Rating MA15+. The name says it all. May not be comfortable to watch together!)
- Utopia (Netflix, Stan. Rating M. Australia’s answer to The Office.)
- Colin From Accounts (Binge. Rating: MA15+. Australian. Can get quite rude.)
- Gilmore Girls (Netflix. Rating PG)
- Peep Show (ABC iview. Rating M. Very uncouth youth!)
